Our Community

The Studio Community

The Ceramics area at the University of Arkansas takes pride in fostering a strong community of artists, both working within the studio and also as contributors and participants in the burgeoning arts community of our region. We believe students get the best educational experience when they are working actively alongside their peers, whether it is on their own projects, participating in a clay club event, attending a visiting artist lecture, or simply firing a kiln together. To this end, we work hard to make our community one in which inclusiveness and personal diligence coalesce in an experience tailored to bring the best out of each student.

Ceramics Events

The Ceramics area hosts a number of events each semester that students are encouraged to attend. In most semesters, there is at least one visiting artist (that provides a lecture, seminars, and critiques), ACE fundraising events, a ceramics sponsored studio visit outside the region, and an end-of-semester exhibition. Each year, we also send a portion of our students to the National Council on Education in Ceramic Arts’ national conference. Please check the homepage of our site for upcoming events.

The Association of Ceramic Enthusiasts

ACE is a student-run organization with the mission of increasing the visibility and impact of ceramics on-campus and in the local community. Our very active ACE members organize multiple events each year to help raise funds for visiting artists, offset costs for students who wish to attend the annual NCECA conference, and to help contribute to studio improvements. Active membership in ACE is an important part of the ceramic student’s development, helping to garner experience in organizing events, generating publicity, and selling works. If you are a student interested in participating in ACE, just ask any of your instructors and they will let you know when the next meeting is taking place. Or, connect with ACE on Facebook.

Art in Northwest Arkansas

The Art Department regularly hosts exhibitions, visiting artist lectures, and other art-related events. Within the Art Department there is the Fine Arts Center Gallery and the student-run sUgAR exhibition series. Also on campus is the student-run Anne Kittrell Gallery located in the Student Union. The Drama and Music departments regularly offer discounted or free programming for students as well.

Beyond campus, Northwest Arkansas is home to many different arts organizations and events; arts programming in the region is plentiful. Fayetteville is home to the Walton Arts Center, which brings Broadway quality theater, musical performances, and an art gallery to the city. Also in Fayetteville, there is the Fayetteville Underground and First Thursday ArtWalks, which are great ways of introducing students to some of our many local artists. And, if you venture just a few miles up the road, there are even more things to do. Recently, Bentonville was featured on Hyperallergic as, "America's Newest Art Pilgrimmage."

Living in Northwest Arkansas

One of the fastest-growing regions in the country, Northwest Arkansas is home to over 450,000 residents and offers many unique cultural experiences, such as the newly opened Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art and the 21-C Museum Hotel. The city of Fayetteville itself boasts the Walton Arts Center, as well as great restaurants and nightlife, excellent farmer’s markets, and a historic downtown area. Fayetteville is regularly listed as one of the top places in the US to live, by Forbes, BusinessWeek, and others. It is a bicycle friendly town, with trails and greenways to help get you around, and there is an abundance of outdoor activities in the surrounding Ozark Mountains.